Cosy home ideas; creating a sanctuary

Home is as much as idea as an actual place. Somewhere that is closely connected with our emotional attachment to where we live or were born. Not just anywhere can be considered home however. Home is a feeling of security and belonging. Nonetheless in order to create a home like ambience interior design can play an important role. Think about a favourite corner of a room where you like to curl up and read a book or binge watch a Netflix series on TV. Creating a cosy house design can be achieved in a number of different ways.

Easy TIPS: How to make your home cosy and warm

The great architects of the 19th and 20th Centuries such as Edwin Lutyens, Frank Lloyd Wright and Charles Renie Mackintosh were renowned for the homes they designed for the bourgeoisie of the time. Eclectic houses that had formal reception rooms and more intimate living spaces. Many of them featured the inglenook or the cosy corner, a space off the larger living space where clients could find a more intimate ambience. Usually beside a fireplace and with a lower ceiling height. Although most of us don’t live in such large houses we can still recreate the same effect within the living room using furniture and lighting to create a cosy home decor.

Using Furniture to create cosy spaces

Seating elements like armchairs and sofas can be a good place to start when creating cosy house ideas. Depending on its size a room can be considered as a series of distinct spaces. Furniture helps to define these separate zones, the dining table and chairs, the sofa, an armchair by the fireplace. Even for a small living space if armchairs and a sofa are grouped around a coffee table or a rug, facing one another there can be an instant sense of intimacy. Equally a cosy corner can be created with a dining table if it is separated within a living room using other furniture and plants to define a space.

Creating different zones using lighting

Lighting is another simple way to create a comfortable and inviting ambience. In addition to an overhead ceiling light. If a room is divided into zones using point lighting sources the overall effect is softer and easier on the eye. These lighting points should include separate lighting for a dining table, usually placed directly over the table; an overhead lamp beside a chair to create a reading area. And even a favourite poster or artwork can be highlighted to create a focus or statement within a space.

The Mindful home: Sustainable materials

Some materials are warmer by their nature, wood for example used underfoot for flooring is cosy and welcoming. It can also be used for furniture or as a wall cladding finish lending warmth. You should take care that wood is sourced from sustainable forests however which nowadays is easier than ever to check. Fabrics and textiles used for curtains and upholstery add additional comfort as well as absorbing sound which helps create a more cosy aural atmosphere.

Using technology for creating cosy home design

Technology also plays an increasingly important role in the creation of the Mindful home. The Smart Home that coordinates energy saving movement sensors for lighting, remote controlled heating systems and thermostats is both a way to save on energy use and help the environment. Heat exchange systems, solar energy and high-spec insulation are more affordable today than ever before and make a huge difference in contemporary cosy house design.